This week's news cycle has been dominated by the 50th anniversary of John F. Kennedy's assassination, continuing problems with Obamacare websites across the nation, and ongoing strife in Syria. It's cheerful stuff! But in the meantime, at least there's the PlayStation vs. Xbox war to keep tabs on... and on that note, here are some of the most thought-y (is that a word, Mr. Colbert?) tweets I encountered this week. Some are current-events oriented, others are a bit more free-floating, but they're all smart. And good. With, in some cases, funny pictures.

Christopher Sogohian of the ACLU remembered, amid the continuing fallout from the NSA's monitoring of American Internet traffic, that web surveillance—and tech giants collaborating with the NSA—has been going on for years.

Across the world, journalist Pedro da Costa caught this slice of human life at the European Parliament:

Science writer Ed Yong then did the most nerd-riffic tribute ever to the late scientist Fred Sanger:

Comedian Hannibal Buress, meanwhile, added wit to health care:

New York Magazine book critic Kathryn Schulz then discovered the email auto-response we all secretly want:

Meanwhile, Joy Reid of the Grio looked at George Zimmerman's latest felony charge.